Daily Market Updates 18.08.2020
Tuesday 18.08.2020
Asian Session
Asian equities inched up after the rally in technology stocks in the U.S. Japan’s index Nikkei 225 has lost -0.20% to 23,051.08, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng HSI rose +0.079% to 25,367.38. In South Korea, the Kospi index fell -2.46% to 2,348.24 and the Shanghai Composite index gained +0.36% to 3,451.09.
| Asian Stock | Closed |
| Nikkei | -0.20% |
| Hong Kong HSI | +0.079% |
| China Shanghai SSE | +0.36% |
| KOSPI – South Korea | -2.46% |
US Stocks
The investors do not seem to care much about the U.S. – China tensions or the lack of a fiscal stimulus as the US equities edged higher. The S&P 500 finishes just within a few points below the all-time closing high it reached in February. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 86.11 points or -0.31%, the S&P500 rose 9.14 points, a gain of +0.27% and Nasdaq set record highs and rose by 1.07 points a gain of +0.83%. Investors are waiting for tomorrow when the Federal Reserve will release minutes for its latest policy meetings.
| U.S Stocks | Closed |
| DOW | -0.31% |
| S&P500 | +0.27% |
| NASDAQ | +0.83% |
Major Currencies
Euro/Dollar is currently trading at 1.1887 and its testing the 1.1900 level. It is expected to test the current monthly and yearly trading high around 1.1915. Australian Dollar against US Dollar is currently trading at 0.7225 and its near its weekly tops. We can see that it breaks the previous 5 days range which it was contained in the previous days. GBP/USD got above the resistance level at 1.3110 and is currently trading at around 1.3163. EUR/JPY is currently trading at 125.196 and it completed two consecutive negative days. The EUR/CHF is currently trading at 1.0767 and it is in a sideway consolidation without a sign of breakout yet.
Gold Market
The price of gold this morning moved higher and currently is trading at $2000. Traders of the yellow metal are now waiting for the minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve last policy meeting which is due for release tomorrow. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc has added Barrick Gold Corp, the world’s second-largest miner of the metal, to its portfolio. Berkshire on Friday reported a purchase of 20.9 million shares as of the end of the second quarter. The move is seen significant as in the past, Buffett, the billionaire chairman of Berkshire, cautioned against investing in the metal because it’s not productive like a farm or a company (source livemint.com).
Oil Market
Benchmark U.S. crude oil for September delivery CLV20, rose 88 cents to $42.89 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude oil for October delivery BRNV20 rose 57 cents to settle at $45.37 a barrel.
European Stocks
European equities opened down in early trade today because of the tensions between the U.S and China and the spread of covid-19 virus. Even though European Equities opened lower in the morning until now they manage to recover their morning losses. The Europe Stoxx 600 index was up 0.11%, Germany’s DAX index +0.19%, FTSE index +0.056% and CAC40 index +0.14%.
On the data front 18-08-2020
| Time (GMT+3) | Event | Impact |
| 04:30 pm | AUD Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes | High |
| 03:30 pm | USD Building Permits | Medium |
| 03:30 pm | USD Housing Starts | Medium |
